


Love and War

by anxietymusings



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Crown Prince Remus, Crown Prince Roman, Deceit Virgil and Logan are siblings, Deceit is called Elliotte, F/M, Fantasy, Genderbent Deceit, Lady Deceit, Logan and Deceit are twins, Lord Logan, Lord Virgil, M/M, Magic, Magic Users, Prince Patton - Freeform, Roman Remus and Patton are siblings, Roman and Remus are also twins, royal au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-14
Updated: 2020-02-04
Packaged: 2021-03-08 06:48:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21797017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anxietymusings/pseuds/anxietymusings
Summary: Magic ebbs and flows through the air we breathe, the food we eat and the water we drink. Kingdoms have been forged and destroyed with magic. Long before the present day a number of ancient Kings had feared magic and hunted those with the ability to manipulate the energies around them to near extinction. Magical blood, potent enough to manifest powers was so rare the families with these traits were feared or adored, depending on the kingdom.In this world two sets of siblings are finding their way one wrong step away from the next Magical War.***Warnings will be updated as the story is written***
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders/Deceit Sanders, Logic | Logan Sanders & Morality | Patton Sanders
Comments: 6
Kudos: 22





	1. A Meeting Like No Other

Magic ebbs and flows through the air we breathe, the food we eat and the water we drink. Kingdoms have been forged and destroyed with magic. Long before the present day a number of ancient Kings had feared magic and hunted those with the ability to manipulate the energies around them to near extinction. Magical blood, potent enough to manifest powers was so rare the families with these traits were feared or adored, depending on the kingdom. 

Three royal families had magical blood, one had kept this fact a secret for as long as they could. When the youngest daughter of the king was married off to a neighbouring kingdom, the blood secret was held tighter. Her new husband despised magic, outlawing its use in his Kingdom. The young Queen soon fell pregnant with her first children; a pair of twin boys; when the twins were two she had her third son. These three boys grew together, luckily for the Queen no magical abilities had formed in any of her sons. 

Dark times soon fell over the kingdom when the Queen became gravely ill, her health deteriorating rapidly until she was bedridden. The King had tried all of the healers in the castle, however nothing worked, until one night a stranger arrived at the castle with a young girl. The stranger spoke with the King and assured him they could heal the Queen, and would do so for free, asking instead for a favour. Without listening further the King agreed and allowed the stranger into the castle, showing them to the Queen’s chambers. The young girl moved quickly and silently, picking up a copper bowl and filling it with fresh water, she took a cloth out of her cloak and dipped it into the water, gently dabbing the Queen’s forehead. 

“You don’t look like a healer,” the King stated as the stranger began placing vials on a bedside table.

With a chuckle the stranger nodded, “Well, you have outlawed the type of healing I perform.”

“Witch!” The King gasped, drawing his sword, pointed at the stranger. 

The stranger continued to work, ignoring the King’s shout, “We made a deal, would be a shame should a King be incapable of keeping his word. Dee, the white candles and sage please.”

The child, Dee moved wordlessly, handing the requested items to the stranger. They were about to return to the Queen when a large hand gripped their shoulder, pulling them away from the bed. The stranger stopped, their eyes meeting the King’s as he held the child against him, his longsword pressed against their chest. Dee’s face was wide with fear, the stranger stood, attempting to remain relaxed as they dusted their cloak.

“I came here with my daughter as your wife is dying of a magical sickness, and you threaten not only me, but a seven year old child. Let my daughter go and I shall heal your wife, then we shall leave. There is no other option, your majesty,” the stranger snarled, mockingly bowing to the King as his grip on his sword tightened.

“Mother, please, heal the Queen,” Dee spoke softly, her eyes wide with fear, darting to the fading woman in the bed. 

“Do as your child says and I will release them,” the King snapped.

Slowly the stranger, turned away from their daughter and returned to fixing the remedy for the sickness plaguing the Queen. The King’s grip on the child Dee never loosened in the time it took for the Queen to have the remedy administered. The stranger stepped back from the bed, quickly swiping a vial as the Queen woke. As the Queen stirred, the stranger shouted for Dee to run, throwing the vial at the feet of the King. The vial smashed as a deep fog surrounded the King and the child, startled the King’s grip loosened for a split second. That second had been long enough for the child to wriggle free of his grip, however not without a cut to their right cheek. The last thing the child saw as they ran from the room was the angered King yelling for the guards. 

The Queen had survived that night, the child had vanished, and the King had slain the stranger for using magic. Whatever the stranger had done, it had healed the Queen, allowing her to continue raising her sons. Her sons had grown strong, while the mystery of the girl from that night soon became a legend among the young of the kingdom. On the eve of the sons sixteenth birthday a crow visited the Queen, a letter tied to its leg. Whatever had been on the letter had scared the Queen, so much so that she requested double the guards at the twin’s birthday feast on the morrow. She had heard the stories of the stranger and the girl, she had once accepted her death at the magical sickness, however her second chance had allowed her to raise her sons, yet guilt still plagued her. 

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Three siblings in a bordering kingdom had once had a relatively normal life, until the night their mother had gone to the neighbouring kingdom with her only daughter. They were supposed to return by the morning, when they didn’t the father became worried yet stayed with his sons, hoping the girls had only been slightly delayed. Two more days and he had contacted their King with his worries, almost one week had passed when there was a knock on the door of the family’s home. A knight stood with a child in his arms, while the child’s hair was dirty and matted, their clothing and skin covered in mud and their face sporting a deep cut, the father gasped and took his daughter into his arms. The knight gave the man a bow before leaving. It had taken days before the girl told her father and brothers what had happened, and within a week the deep cut on her face had been healed to nothing more than a scar. The family’s King sent word to the father when news finally reached him, apologising for the loss of the mother, a once brilliant mage and magical advisor to the crown. She had been on a private job at her King’s request, hoping that healing the ailing Queen would have been enough to secure hers and her daughter’s safety, how wrong she had been. Within the year, the children’s father would be found by the eldest son hanging in his room. One week later the trio had been taken to the royal school for mages, under the assumption that their mother’s abilities may have passed on. 

The trio were naturals, developing skills at a rate that was previously unseen. Soon the eldest boy and the girl, a pair of twins, had graduated early, earning themselves places in the King’s palace. The eldest boy became a scholar, specialising in divination as the girl trained in combat, celebrating their fifteenth birthday one week before the royal twins’ sixteenth. Their younger brother was a master of elemental magic and healing completing his final year at the academy before he too would join his siblings as a trusted member of the King’s court. As was tradition, invites had been sent to neighbouring kingdoms and while the trio were not royalty, they were included in the royal party attending in honour of their kingdom. The siblings were trusted with protecting the nobles attending the feast, by any means necessary. 

This would be the crown Princess’ first outing without her parents by her side, therefore even the servants attending had received complete wardrobes for travelling and each day of the feast they would be attending. The siblings had received clothing for travelling like everyone else attending however, their clothing had been imbued with magic from runes sewn into the fabric to secret compartments for spell components. The brothers received new suits of similar quality, their sister receiving a long dress for the day of the feast, complete with cloaks. Before the group left, the siblings were called upon by the King, meeting him in his chambers for a private conversation.

“Ah, you made it,” the old King smiled at the trio, “I know your mother would be proud of the three of you.” he muttered, a smile in his eyes.

“Thank you, my King,” the eldest brother spoke.

“Oh Logan, the formalities do not matter for the moment, we are in private after all,” the King chuckled as Logan merely nodded, “Dee, Virgil, I hope your packages all reached you. However that is not why I called you here. As you know our relationship with the kingdom you are going to is rather strained, your mother’s death shall always be one of my deepest regrets. Anyway, to avoid questions being raised around the three of you, you will be using your official titles.”

“Apologies my King, but do you mean our job titles?” Logan began as the King laughed heartily, shaking his head.

“Of course not Logan,” his laughter faded as the siblings stared confused, “Your family title, your family were noble, it was why you were immediately brought into the royal school after your father’s death.”

“We never use our titles,” Virgil stated, “I had almost forgotten we had titles.”

The King sighed and nodded, “I know you prefer to use your earned titles, however this King is angry, and he hates magic, I wish to keep you three safe. Your names on the invitations follow your family titles, I wished to inform you before you arrived to avoid confusion.”

“And if the King recognises me?” Dee spoke softly, “Does my title follow my moniker or my birth name?”

“You mentioned once your mother called you Dee at the castle, therefore your title is in your birth name. Now you are there primarily to protect the crown Princess, however each of you matter to me and I wish for your safe return. You have my permission to use any means necessary to make it home should anything happen at the feast.” The King stated seriously, before pulling the siblings into a tight hug.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

The royal party arrived at the neighbouring Kingdom the morning of the feast and were greeted by a large number of guards. The group were escorted to their rooms and given tours of the castle, the siblings remained together until the groups retired to their rooms to prepare for the feast. 

The twin princes had been woken early to prepare for the feast, the eldest twin Roman, spent his morning surrounded by his servants getting ready for the feast. Afterall, he would be looking for a suitor tonight to arrange his marriage, he wanted to be prepared so he could know his future partner. His twin Remus had spent the morning training, spending merely twenty minutes after training to get ready for the feast, excited that he would be able to meet a number of new nobles to tease. Their younger brother Patton had spent his morning in a lesson regarding the other kingdoms attending the feast before he too had to get ready for the feast. 

Each noble was announced and welcomed into the great hall of the castle, most then began mingling with others they had known from previous affairs. The three siblings waited with their Princess to be called in, each sibling adorned in the respective colours for their specialised magical abilities. 

“From the Kingdom of Noctem Aeternam, Crown Princess Alecia Daywood,” the announcer called out, a soft applause sounded as the Princess stepped out. 

“Accompanying the Princess, The Lords Logan, Virgil and Lady Elliotte of the Noble House of Stellae.”

A hush drew over the crowd as the trio stepped through the doors. Logan wore a deep blue suit with gold embellishments, like his family name his suit looked like an array of stars. Virgil’s deep purple and silver suit brought out the purple dyes in his hair, his half smile held in place showed his nerves, he would much prefer to pull his cloak over his head and hide in the corner. Dee stood between her brothers, her gold dress was both more revealing yet practical than the other nobles around her, it held many secret compartments for spell components and the slit in the leg allowed her to run should she need to. Dee’s eyes locked with the King’s as she smiled and followed her brother’s to their Princess, Virgil quickly backed into relative shadow as the remaining nobles had their names called out.

“Attention please,” the announcer called out, “We would now wish to welcome the royal princes to the feast. The young Prince Patton.” A boy around Virgil’s age wearing a grey and sky blue suit stepped out to the King’s table, bowing to the crowd before taking his place. 

“Please welcome, the Crown Prince’s Roman and Remus,” the announcer called out, a soft applause filled the room as two boys entered at the King’s table. 

Both boys were in full royal suits, one sporting black and green, the other white and red. Logan leaned to his siblings, “Remus is the brother in black, Roman is in white.”

The room soon filled with a soft chatter as the remaining nobles took their seats, the siblings found themselves close to the King’s table alongside their Princess. Dee sat on one side of the Princess chattering with her about the castle and visiting a neighbouring kingdom for the first time without their King. Dee continued to shoot glances at the royal family, using the reflections on glassware to avoid drawing attention. Logan and Virgil spoke in hushed whispers, discussing the information they knew on the royals and the kingdom they were in, attempting to distract themselves from the fact they were now sat within view of the man who killed their mother. 

“We wish to welcome you all to our home to celebrate the sixteenth birthday of our sons Roman and Remus, now that the twins are coming of age, we shall be looking for suitable matches for our son’s future partners,” The Queen smiled addressing the crowds.

“As you sit among us, any noble children of a certain age may be considered as possible matches for my boys, we hope you will take the time to introduce yourselves throughout the day,” The King smiled, looking to the twins as a number of people in the crowd sat straighter.

Servants brought the first course to the table as the King spoke, as he finished his speech he began the feast. Conversations broke out across the room, Roman surveyed the room smiling, his eyes being drawn to the contingent from the Kingdom of Noctem Aeternam. The entire group had similar clothing, fit for royalty, even the servants who had travelled with the group were fitted in beautiful clothes. However, that was not what drew the Prince’s eye, a trio who radiated an energy he had never once encountered. Looking to his brothers Roman could see they too had noticed the group, Patton had barely touched his food as he stared. As the dinner progressed Roman leaned to his brother and whispered to him.

“Who has caught your eye brother?” 

Remus raised a brow, “The same group you have been staring at. Once the dinner is finished I plan on introducing myself properly.”

“Even Pat is staring,” Roman muttered, his eyes were drawn to a flash of purple walking through the crowds.

Logan ate his food before leaning over to Dee, “Looks like we’ve been spotted,” he whispered, looking to Virgil as his brother deftly stepped past servants towards the toilet.

“The King continues to stare too,” Dee remarked before leaning to the Princess, “I wonder if your father was hoping for a new alliance.”

The Princess smiled to Dee, “He wants information at the very least, and who better to obtain it than the children this King orphaned?”

“Point well made my Princess,” Dee chuckled, taking a bite of her chicken as her eyes met the Kings.

The feast continued for another hour before plates were cleared away and tables were moved aside. The royal family began to mingle amongst the nobles as the siblings were separated by conversations across the room. Virgil had slipped into the shadows, more content to watch the crowds in place of getting surrounded by strangers. He was happily sipping from a glass when there was a gentle tap on his shoulder. 

“Good evening, I wished to check that you are okay, you’re standing alone,” a voice spoke from his shoulder.

Virgil turned to face the voice and froze, his head tilting up to meet eyes with Prince Roman, dashing smile and all. “I am not one for crowds. My siblings and I tend to avoid parties.”

“You seemed so relaxed at dinner, would you rather we make our way somewhere more private?” Prince Roman began, without an answer he gently guided Virgil to the Palace Gardens. “Better?”

Virgil simply nodded, afraid his voice would fail him, “But shouldn’t you stay amongst the other nobles, I am okay to remain out here alone…”

“What kind of Prince would I be if I left you out here alone?” Roman questioned, a smirk playing on his lips. “Besides, I’ve met the other nobles year after year, you’re new to me.”

“That does not make me a toy, my Lord,” Virgil snapped, his fists clenched instinctively.

Roman’s hands flew up, suddenly becoming sheepish, “I apologise I did not mean to offend. You caught my eye at the dinner, I wanted to get to know you. I shall leave, you have my most sincere apologies.”

“Virgil,” Virgil stated before sighing, “And you have mine, I do not enjoy these social gatherings, they make me nervous. Had my King not invited me personally I would have remained home.”

Roman nodded, ushering Virgil to a bench where they continued their conversations, Virgil carefully avoiding talk of his family or magic. Unfortunately for Virgil, magic was the one topic Roman was obsessed with, and he knew that the Kingdom of Noctem Aeternam welcomed magic and its users with open arms. 

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Logan and Dee had been separated when the Princess pulled Dee aside, claiming to wish to have what she called ‘girl talk’. Soon Logan found himself speaking with other nobles about their homes and other mindless drivel, that was until Prince Remus introduced himself to the group and requested a private audience with Logan. Within a minute the pair were in a games room with a drink each as they began discussing politics and recent affairs. Ten more minutes and Remus changed, his demeanor becoming more serious as he leaned forward, lowering his voice. 

“Might I be frank with you Logan?” Remus began, taking no time for an answer as he continued, “I asked you to speak with me because, I must admit, your sister drew my eye. She is most certainly beautiful, however, I wished to know more about her, and who better to speak with than her brother!”

“Why not simply speak with Elle,” Logan remarked, using the nickname non-magic users called Dee. 

Remus sighed, “I speak with her, questions are asked and soon she will have any other noble wishing to increase their standing with my father slandering her name. Speaking with you however makes it appear merely two gentlemen having a friendly discussion.”

“What would you like to know?” 

“Firstly, has she ever attended another feast? I recognise her from somewhere but I can’t place where,” Remus muttered, his eyes distant as he tried to think.

Logan simply shook his head, “My siblings and I spent most of our childhood in a school, our parents passed when we were young. We became the King’s Wards and went to school.”

“Hmm, must be someone else then,” Remus shrugged, “So tell me all about her please.”

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Dee followed the Princess, watching anyone who got close to the pair. She remained quiet as the Princess was introduced to the King. Dee continued to watch the crowd as the King turned to her to introduce himself properly.

“Elliotte Stellae, my Lord,” Dee bowed as the King took her hand, kissing her knuckles.

It took everything in Dee not to scream or run as the King spoke with her and the Princess, his eyes often darting to Dee. She could see the question in his eyes as they continually scanned the scar on her right cheek. Dee hadn’t known when, but at some point the Princess had left and joined another group. Once it was just the two of them the King spoke candidly.

“Your face looks very familiar,” he admitted, “Have you ever been in my Kingdom before?”

“I don’t believe so, my Lord,” Dee lied feeling the same stabbing pain in her mind from the simple lie. 

“How did someone in your position earn a scar like that?” 

“It was a training accident, I’ve been training to be a protector of the crown since I was a child,” Dee smiled, the half-truth reducing some of the pain.

The King simply nodded, “I haven’t heard much from your house in many years. I believe the last I heard was regarding the tragic death of your father, I hadn’t even known you and your brothers had been orphaned. There were stories about the Stellae House being one of the last magic blooded houses… is that true?”

“I couldn’t tell you my Lord, all I know was my mother was once a brilliant healer. She used to travel a lot to aid other Kingdoms,” Dee sighed sadly, her eyes meeting the Kings, “She never made it home one trip.”

The King nodded, “a sad tale, especially for a noblewoman. You have my deepest sympathies. Now I have held you here for far too long and I believe we both have more people to speak with. Goodnight Lady Stellae.”

“Good night, my Lord.”


	2. A Feast of Fools

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two sets of siblings get to know each other, but nothing is as it seems at this Feast.

In the light of the fireplace Logan leaned back in the armchair he had sat in, Remus was staring into the flames opposite him. Remus’ actions confused Logan, why would he not simply speak with Elliotte, claiming it was to avoid some unrealistic confrontation intrigued Logan. He had believed both prince’s would already have every moment of their lives planned to the letter. And if that were the case, there would be no reason for Remus to wish to get to know Elliotte. Logan often wished at times like these he could possess the abilities Virgil had to hypothesise any and all possible reasons and outcomes of a scenario. Remus looked back to Logan once more.

“I apologise if I was too forward, my curiosity has gotten the best of me,” Remus sighed, his expression dropping.

“It is not that which confuses me. You are a Crown Prince, therefore tradition dictates your marriage would have been planned out long before now,” Logan stated, “I understand the game King’s play allowing nobles to fight for their children’s hands. Aside from that, you have never met myself or my siblings before now, how can you be certain we are who we claim to be. Our births were never announced, we have been orphans since Elle and I were seven, and yet, you seem fixated on my sibling.”

“My parents chose to allow us to find our own partners,” Remus snapped, anger in his eyes as they appeared bright green for a second. “And your sister commands a room, most people were staring at her, why wouldn’t I wish to get to know someone like that!”

Logan’s head tilted, his eyes boring into Remus, “I am not as skilled as Elle is at this sort of thing, however you have a tell when you lie Remus, I wouldn’t feel bad, everyone does. If you wish to learn anything about my family, you should learn to tell the truth.” 

“And what’s my tell?” Remus snapped, his fist clenching, “What do you think I lied about!?”

A soft chuckle fell from Logan’s lips, “I was not fully convinced you had lied however you confirmed it there beyond a reasonable doubt. And I believe you are lying about why you wish to know more about my sibling, after all that has been the topic of conversation.”

Remus’ eyes turned bright green as he stood, his fists clenched. Logan scanned the room as it darkened, humming in intrigue. Suddenly Remus was inches away from Logan’s face, speaking low, “I got your sister out of the castle the night your mother died, if you’d like I can tell my father exactly who she is. See how she’d get out tonight.”

“And the truth comes out,” Logan chuckled, “The last time my sibling was here, she was not as powerful as she is now. I believe your father would have trouble harming her. Now, I appreciate you aiding my sibling escaping all of those years ago, however, you should know, making a threat against individuals you hardly know is ill advised.”

Remus growled, his eyes glowing as he stood straight, “And you should know, I am the Crown Prince of this Kingdom. I have the power here, not you!”

Logan stood, brushing his suit gently, straightening as he watched Remus. “You may wish to keep your temper in check, my lord. Magic isn’t a good look in this Kingdom.”

Remus’ jaw fell open as Logan stepped out of the games room, returning to the party as he lifted another glass. Logan stood with his Princess as Remus returned, looking calm once more, both boys eyes scanning the room as they mingled. The Princess spoke softly to Logan as his eyes flashed a deep blue. Their conversation forgotten as Logan passed the Princess a small vial while his eyes scanned the room, one hand resting on the Princess’ elbow. 

“Logan you are scaring me, what did you see,” the Princess whispered.

Logan’s eyes met the Princess’, “Did Elle eat the same meal as you?” Logan whispered.

“She always does, I choose food I know we both enjoy. I have asked her to stop that, why?” The Princess asked, drinking from the vial as Logan held her close, searching the room.

“Damnit,” Logan muttered, “I need you to find your knights and stay with them. I need to find Dee…”

The Princess forced Logan to look at her, had she not known Logan she would swear he was scared. “What is going on Logan?”

“Dee eats the same food as you because she switches the food… She uses magic so no one knows,” Logan whispered, “Someone poisoned your food, Dee ate it and she doesn’t have an antidote on her. You need to get to your guard now, I need to find my sister.”

The Princess’ eyes flew wide as she nodded, quickly rushing to find her knights. Logan made his way to the main doors as a figure caught his attention. Should someone ask in the future, Logan would say he did not think twice about following the person who attempted to poison his Princess, he would be lying. Turning on his heels Logan followed the stranger, scanning their movements, hoping Elle would be okay until he found her. Remus had been watching Logan since he couldn’t see Elle. Watching Logan grow concerned confused Remus, he had shown no emotion in the games room, now he looked flustered. As Logan began following the Lord of some other kingdom Remus made his way outside the great hall. He might be able to find Elle somewhere. 

Remus made his way through the halls towards the quarters of the visiting nobles. Had he not been looking for someone he wouldn’t have noticed the flash of golden fabric trailing into a servant’s passageway. As he rounded the corner Remus could see the barely conscious Elliotte leaned against the wall, one hand holding her stomach the other wiping a dark substance from her lips.

Elliotte had turned from the King as a wave of dizziness hit her, as a precaution she felt the small pockets of her dress for a vial. Groaning she recalled leaving the vial on her desk in her bed chambers. Excusing herself from the conversation she had found herself in with a noble who liked to spin lies she began walking to her room. While Elle appreciated her powers, some days the natural abilities felt like a punishment. Elle had never been one for large groups, large groups lead to people lying. Normally she could ignore small lies to the point they would merely irritate rather than hurt, however every second she was in the Great Hall made her head pound. Every lie spoken felt like a nail being hammered into her mind, even stepping outside of the room was not helping. Her steps were uneven as she made her way through the corridors, using the walls as support. She was still a distance from her room when she ran into the Queen and bowed.

“Oh goodness, I never saw you there dear,” lie. “Lady Stellae, am I correct?” The Queen smiled, a sickly sweet voice coating her lies as Elliotte smiled to her, focusing on the new person as the world blurred around her.

“Yes, my Lady,” Elliotte smiled, holding in a cough. “Your palace it beautiful, however I fear I have eaten something that does not agree with me.”

“Oh dear, I do hope you feel better soon,” lie. The Queen took Elliotte’s hands, placing something in them as her eyes met Elle’s, “We shall speak more when you are feeling better. Keep this for me please.”

Elliotte nodded, bowing slightly as she tried to walk down the corridor, stumbling and slumping in a servant’s passageway. She looked at the thing the Queen had given her, it was a locket, somewhere deep in her memories Elle recognised the locket. Opening it revealed old family portraits of Dee, Logan, and Virgil together. The last thing Elle remembered doing was slipping the locket around her neck. The young mage remained on the verge of unconsciousness, being kept half-conscious thanks to a rune. The poison was acting fast, even on a mage it was already causing her to cough up blood. As the rune faded; a green aura filled Elle’s vision as one of the Crown Prince’s appeared before her, gently holding her shoulders.

“Elliotte?” Remus gasped, leaning forward to scoop her into his arms, Elle’s head fell against his chest as Remus rushed towards Elle’s room, hoping she’d have something that could help her. 

Remus was near-running when he opened the door to Elle’s room, ignoring the blood covering both teenagers. Elle had slipped into unconsciousness soon after he had picked her up. Remus laid Elle on her bed as his eyes fell to a small box of vials on the desk, his eyes scanned the rune-marked stoppers and cursed. Patton was the brother who knew runes, but hearing the ragged breathing of Elliotte, Remus knew he did not have the time to get his brother. His hands trembled as they hovered over the vials; a heat spread from one vial, given he had no other hope Remus grabbed the vial and rushed to Elliotte, carefully feeding her the contents. Elliotte remained still as Remus held her tightly, his eyes focused on the girl he saved when they were children. As the seconds dragged on his muscles relaxed and tears fell, his eyes flashing green as a scream echoed around the room. 

“D’you have to be so loud?” Elle mumbled, coughing up more blood as Remus’ grip tightened once more. “We have to stop meeting like this.”

Remus’ eyes scanned over Elliotte as her eyes opened and the pair laughed softly. Elliotte slowly moved, making her way to the box and drinking a second vial. She quickly returned to Remus and curled against him.

“Sorry about your suit,” Elliotte mumbled, her head resting on the Prince’s shoulder, “I thought you had forgotten about me.”

“How could I forget you?” Remus whispered, kissing Elliotte’s hair while tears continued to fall.

“I mean we were kids,” Elliotte whispered, “And I didn’t stay too long…”

Remus chuckled, “You stayed long enough to leave an impression. I never thought I’d see you again Dee.”

“I missed you Ree.” Elliotte whispered as she slipped back into unconsciousness, relaxed and safe.

___________________________________________________________

The cool night air nipped at Virgil and Roman as they sat in the garden. After initially trying to get Virgil to talk about his home and the prevalence of magic there Roman accepted a temporary defeat. The other boy was simply not answering his questions. Relieved of the change of topic Virgil began to relax, soon enjoying his conversation with the prince. The topic reached languages they wished to learn. Roman mentioned wishing to learn more about runes while Virgil took a moment before sighing.

“I have a book I wish to read, there’s no way to translate it.” Virgil stared into the distance, Roman could swear his eyes were the same purple as his suit for a moment, “it was written in one of the ancient magical languages. I started learning one but its so complicated and draining…”

“How can reading be draining?” Roman questioned, genuinely confused.

Virgil bit his lip before whispering, “You have to use magic to read the writing. I passed out after reading the author’s name the first time…”

As quickly as he opened up, Virgil tensed and his eyes fell to the floor. He had just admitted to the son of a king who despises magic that he too has magic. Virgil tensed, waiting for Roman to scream for the guards, to have him arrested or whatever horrible thing his father did to mages, after all there was a reason the air felt empty. The gentle hand on his shoulder caused Virgil to jump, it took a few seconds to realise the hand was not hurting him before he opened his eyes to look at the prince. Roman’s face had a sad smile on it, almost looking ashamed.

“You are safe here with me Virgil, you are visiting nobility, my father would never harm you,” Roman stated, a rush of relief passed over Virgil. “On the subject, how did you know you had magic?”

Virgil shrugged, “I’ve always known... my family has a history of magic and while my mother was alive she taught us all about magic. You are rather obsessed with magic considering the views your father has… and his actions.”

A swift wave of anger hit Virgil in the chest before shame took its place as Prince Roman kicked a stone away from him. “I do not share my father’s views, as for his actions… they repulse me. Besides, you have magic, aren’t you obsessed?”

“It’s different when you have magic. Using your magic is like breathing, Dee told me once she got in trouble with a warlock at school. As punishment, for twenty four hours she couldn’t use her magic. She described it like drowning in a desert.” Virgil’s face dropped, “its like this place, it feels wrong, like there’s no real air. Logan and Dee are suffering more I know, they like to make sure I don’t suffer the way they have to…”

“I believe I under…” Roman paused, “Wait… Dee? I thought your sister’s name was Elliotte.”

Virgil’s eyes widened, darting around the garden for some excuse to leave. Without warning the younger boy darted from the seat, startling Roman for a second. Virgil was fast as he ran through the garden, seeing a hedge maze and bee-lining for it. Roman was soon in pursuit, while he knew in a battle of strength he would win out, Virgil was definitely faster than him. As the pair entered the hedge maze Roman stopped running, hoping his knowledge of the maze would aid him in finding Virgil. He had so much to explain, if the other noble would listen. 

Virgil had taken multiple turns before the prince made it into the maze, he knew the Prince would out maneuver him in such a well known area. Logan would simply search through the Prince’s mind for a map and use that to out-think him. Dee would change the maze. Virgil weighed up his options as he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. Roman was running towards him as Virgil smirked, his eyes flashing purple as clouds covered the moon and the pair were plunged into darkness. Virgil spun on his toes and tried to run as he suddenly felt drained, his magic fizzled out as the clouds slowly dissipated and Virgil collapsed in a heap, dark circles rimming his eyes. Roman quickly scooped the young noble into his arms and carried him back inside the castle. He had to speak with his brother, he had to tell him who Elliotte was.

Roman opened his bedroom door, locking it behind him as he lay Virgil on his bed, slipping the young noble’s jacket off of him. Roman set Virgil’s jacket on a chair, a strange marking stitched into the jacket, it was a rune Roman had recently learned. He quickly grabbed his notebook, flipping through to the page he found the rune. It was a rune commonly used to stand for protecting one’s mind. As Virgil slept, Roman wrote out the runes he could find on Virgil’s coat and the definitions he knew. 

_______________________________________________________

Logan followed the figure through the great hall, gently maneuering his way through the crowds. The figure reached a doorway, throwing their arm to the side. Their hand slammed against the wall before vanishing through the doorway. Logan’s eyes widened as magic sparked across the room. A curse fell from Logan’s lips as he pulled a smaller boy back from the doorway, holding the boy to his chest as a scream rang out across the room. Crumpled on the floor at the foot of the great doors was a young female servant, her skin ashen, her body barely a skeleton. Logan released the boy in his arms and shouted to the hall.

“Step away from the doors, walls, and windows!” Logan’s voice carried as the music stopped, his eyes scanning the walls of the room.

The boy Logan had been holding stared transfixed on a rune, his face paling. “We’re trapped in here…” he whispered, “How do we get out!?”

The King stormed over to Logan, rage filling his eyes as he gripped the shoulders of the young noble. “What did you do?” His voice bellowed.

“Had I done this, do you really think I would be telling everyone to step away from the walls?” Logan snapped, pulling away from the King.

The boy stepped forward, “Father, he pulled me away from the door, he’s telling the truth!”

“Patton, you don’t know what he is!” The King yelled.

Logan snapped, his eyes glowing the deep blue, “I am Logan Stellae, Master Magi and Divination Expert. Now, if you want to get out of here I need to focus!”

The room fell silent as Logan stared at the runes, stepping to the fireplace he waved a hand and the fire died out. Logan reached down and picked up a piece of charcoal; he moved to the centre of the room, knelt down and drew a rune on the cobblestone floor. The rune and his eyes flashed blue as he spoke.

“Virgil, Dee,” Logan began, focusing on the rune. “I am trapped in the great hall with a number of the party guests. I need your help, now.”

Both Dee and Virgil stood up, their eyes glowing as they received the message and responded. Dee quickly slipped out of her dress, finding an old pair of pants and a shirt, she looked to a shocked looking Remus and motioned for him to follow. Virgil met Roman’s eye and pointed to the door, grabbing the Prince’s hand and rushing towards the Great Hall. The quartet found each other at the doors of the hall. The Prince’s stared as Virgil and Dee each drew runes on the floor, creating a window through the wooden doors. Logan stood on the other side as the connection was made, his eyes still scanning the room. 

“What’s the rune on the throne?” Dee whispered, “I only recognise half of it…”

Six sets of eyes were focused on the throne, three translated the rune and their faces fell. Dee met her twins eyes as the smaller boy to his right spoke up. 

“It is a magical drain… it will drain the magic from this room and the people inside it the longer we are trapped in here,” his voice was soft as tears brimmed his eyes, “I’m scared…”

“We’re going to have to break the window, Lo, keep contact with me… You work through there, don’t use magic, save it,” Dee whispered, tears falling as Virgil reluctantly closed the window as Dee turned to him. “How long do we have?”

“It’s started draining the magic… it’ll then go for the largest source of magic,” Virgil muttered, “We have an hour before everyone is affected, maybe thirty minutes before Logan is drained if it starts with him.”

“You focus on breaking that rune… I’ll focus on getting the doors open,” Dee whispered.

Inside the room Logan paced, feeling something latch onto him and pull. Trembling he sat on the floor and focused, his eyes glowing blue. He’d find out who did this if it were the death of him. Patton curled against his mother, shaking as the nobles whispered their fears. The King paced, he always knew magic was dangerous and now it was risking his family’s lives once again.


	3. Shadows of the Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Stellae siblings must find a way to save the party guests trapped in the great hall, their secret is out and their Princess is nowhere in sight. The siblings must hope that they are enough to save the guests before it is too late.

Dee slipped the locket off feeling it resonate with energy as she knelt before the doors, using the locket as a focus to meditate with. The locket glowed gold as Dee reached a hand out towards the door. As she slipped into a trance the doors slowly began to glow. It wasn’t long before Dee’s body fell backwards, Remus catching her as the glow brightened. 

“She’s okay,” Virgil muttered as he drew multiple runes on the floor, trying to find a way to break the magic binding the rune drawing magic from the room, one eye remaining on his sister. 

Remus held Dee close, smoothing her hair from her face as Roman brought a number of tomes on runes to Virgil, desperate to help. Virgil thanked him softly and spoke a number of different runes for Roman to search through, the pair focusing on their task. Logan felt the magic drain from him as he focused on the past evening for information. His fears were soon realised when he watched his Princess pour a liquid into Dee’s glass after the food had been swapped. Logan woke in the great hall, panting as Patton knelt in front of him, scolding him for recklessly using his magic.

“You keep referring to your sister as Dee,” The King stated, “Might I ask why?”

Logan coughed, sitting back and nodding, “I suppose it can’t hurt now… Dee’s birth name was Elliotte but she hated it. Our magic manifested when we were young, Dee can tell whenever someone lies to her. Mother used to call her a liar all the time, saying she couldn’t tell shit… unlike mine or Virgil’s innate abilities, Dee feels pain. Hearing a lie is like stabbing an ice pick through her ear. It’s why she hates lies, she decided instead of the name she hated she’d go by Deceit, a name that puts people on edge. People don’t like lying to someone named deceit.”

“Your mother was the mage that night, your sister was here wasn’t she,” the King muttered as Logan nodded, looking to the floor.

“She doesn’t talk about what happened here… she came home with a cut face and no mother,” Logan muttered.

The Queen stepped over to Logan, sitting beside him, “Your sister is the reason I live,” she stated, chuckling at Logan’s confused look. “She was there, your mother mixed a number of herbs and gave me a potion, my husband did kill your mother. Dee was there, I met her eye as she watched and then, I couldn’t get the image of a rune out of my head. I couldn’t breathe, my throat burned, I saw the rune on a small bottle and drank its contents. I believe your mother always intended to poison me, but Dee saved my life.”

Logan’s face fell, “That explains a lot.” he admitted, “Especially why Dee refused to talk about that night…”

“It appears your sister is someone I should be thanking,” the King muttered, “I believe your sister holds many secrets. The three of you seem to have an aura around you. Something old…”

Logan simply chuckled, his eyes looking to the large doors keeping them trapped, his eyes scanning the room seeing the other noble children fearful. Most large families were in this very room, Logan could name every family and their affiliations, which Kings they were loyal to. “Why are there very few of age nobles here?” Logan asked softly, “It was something about this party that caused me some unease, I must admit.”

“It was an old agreement between three Kingdoms,” The Queen smiled, “It’s tradition.”

Logan simply nodded, looking towards the doorway as a thought entered his head that wasn’t his. Swap places with me. Looking to a ring on his finger Logan took a moment, his eyes scanning the room at the faces surrounding him, the fear they held twinned with his twin’s confidence had him considering it.

_____________________________________

Meanwhile, in the corridor, Dee had woken up, muttered a few words and slipped the necklace on. She stood and looked to Virgil, “I can break the runes but I need to be inside. You and Logan need to be out here… can you make a teleportation bead, I have a plan.”

Virgil’s head darted up from the book, “What about the runes?”

“I’ll be fine, but I need you to do this. Please Virge, I know I can do this,” Dee begged, earning a concerned nod from Virgil as Logan mentally agreed. “If this goes wrong, I love you Virge, tell Logan I love him too.”

Before Virgil could speak, Dee touched a ring on her left hand and in a flash, Logan stood there, swaying. Dee stumbled forwards as she appeared in Logan’s place inside the hall feeling the air leave her lungs. Every eye in the hall landed on her while she waved and stood straight, her eyes scanning the walls.

Patton’s voice piped up, “Why did you swap with Logan?”

“Because it really doesn’t want me here… so I made a plan,” Dee muttered, “It’s why the Princess poisoned me, and I can break the runes from in here thanks to your mother.”

The Queen stood, her eyes falling to the locket, “Your mother’s old locket…”

Dee’s eyes continued scanning the walls, finally finding the rune she had been looking for. Holding a hand out Dee imagined the rune fading, and as a dark shadow curled around her fingertips the rune vanished. As Dee repeated this process with a number of other runes the shadows clung tighter to her hands. Facing the doors Dee held her hands out, trembling as she opened them, the shadows covering her fingers. Virgil shouted for the room to clear out as blood trickled from Dee’s nose. Logan suddenly pulled Remus backwards as he moved to rush to Dee; Virgil’s eyes flashed purple while he rolled a marble into the room. Dee met her twin’s eyes as he nodded and she dropped her concentration on the door; returning her attention to the draining rune on the throne, a message reaching Logan’s mind once more.

I need an illusion of everyone dead inside the hall. Except you and Virgil.

A hissing surrounded her as she picked up the small marble. Dee whispered a name and threw the marble high, a bright purple light filled the room as the Crown Princess appeared. The Princess had changed clothes, donning a travelling cloak that fell to the floor as her eyes widened. She spun on her toes and met Dee’s eyes for a second before returning to scanning the room. Dee could see a soft blue glow since she knew there was an illusion; The Princess however saw what Logan wanted her to. Surrounding her were lifeless bodies, some she recognised from the party; the waiter that served her, a pair of servants the princess had made comment on, nobles she had spoken to, the King and Queen who had welcomed her into their home. 

“Is this what you wanted, my Princess,” Dee snapped, ignoring the burning from where the shadows licked up her hands.

Tears filled the Princess’ eyes as she turned back to Dee, “I… I didn’t kno…”

“Bullshit!” Dee yelled earning a jump from the Princess; and a number of nobles outside the room who were watching. “Your father sent you here. You knew exactly what you planned. Your father planned to sacrifice my brothers and I to bring this parasite into existence! Stop. Lying. To. Me!”

A golden glow surrounded Dee, her eyes lighting up as the Princess took a step backwards, she had rarely been on the receiving end of Dee’s magic, and never of any offensive magic. The room bathed in a soft golden glow from Dee, revealing a shadow stood before the throne. The shadow moved, approaching Dee as the Princess’ eyes locked on the two figures. Both girls heard a hissing as the shadow’s mouth moved.

“I never expected to see you again…” the shadow began, reaching towards Dee, “But you were supposed to die that night, not me!”

Dee looked to the Princess, “You know… I respected you, hell I liked you but this thing cannot exist. And you allowed it to latch onto you.”

“What are you talking about?” The Princess asked.

The shadow hissed, stepping closer to Dee, its ‘face’ centimeters from Dee’s, “I’ll kill you this time.”

“Be my guest,” Dee chuckled, “Haven’t you noticed your little rune isn’t touching my magic?”

“How?” both shadow and Princess asked, the Princess’ eyes darkening as shadows surrounded her.

Dee touched the necklace she wore; the shadow-creature screeching in her face. “I’m channelling your magic, Mother.” 

The shadow thrust an arm forward, piercing Dee’s chest as she struggled to breathe, the glow wavering. A voice outside the hall yelled as the illusion faded revealing Logan and Roman pulling Remus backwards. The Shadow’s focus shifted for a second as Dee ripped the necklace off laughing through her gasping breaths.

“What have you done!?” the Shadow screeched. 

It dropped Dee, spinning around, scanning the room. Dee stumbled aside, falling to her knees as the Princess’ eyes followed the Shadow’s staring at the rune on the throne. The shadow turned, screeching. Dee held a shield as a barrage of offensive spells were aimed at her blocking most of them; a few hitting her and knocking her backwards. The bombardment continued as Dee forced herself to her feet, while she straightened up she began laughing. Magic still hit her, blood trickling from a number of wounds inflicted by the shadow. The shadow continued throwing spells as they hit Dee but inflicted almost no damage. Gasps from beyond the doors caused the shadow to pause and turn to its host. Standing soaked in blood, eyes wide, the Princess crumpled to the floor unmoving. Without its host the shadow screeched, using the last of its strength. Dee was hit by the shadow’s final blow, as Dee hit the floor, the runes around the room shattered. Dee remained unmoving while the onlookers rushed into the room. Logan and Virgil paused in the doorway for a second hoping Dee would jump up laughing and when she didn’t they ran to their sister. The Royal family stared at the dead Princess in their castle, gingerly approaching the scene seeing the damage. Patton looked for the runes, relaxing when he saw none, his eyes falling to the three Stellae siblings before rushing to Dee’s side. 

“We need healers, now!” Patton yelled, pulling a crystal from his pocket, touching Dee’s forehead with it, “Remus its not working! You said your friend made it to work on anything!”

Remus stood behind Patton, his eyes locked on Dee’s body, the shadow had caused a lot of damage to the young girl. Her hands were black from the shadows that had burned into her skin. Dee’s chest barely moved as Patton tried the crystal once more, blood seeping through her shirt from wounds beneath. Her face, however, had been hit the worst. Covering the half of her face the King once scarred, was a large burn. The skin had blistered and peeled leaving Dee with what would be definite scarring covering half of her face.

“What was she doing taking all of these hits!” Remus yelled, his hands trembling as Virgil knelt beside Dee, trembling as he began muttering healing spells.

Logan spoke as he threw off his jacket, taking a clear crystal from his pocket. “She redirected the draining rune. The locket was her focus allowing her to channel the creature’s magic. Instead of draining from the room, therefore her magic, it drained its source. So when the shadow began attacking Dee… she could redirect the damage onto the Princess without the shadow being aware until it was too late.”

“Will she survive?” the King spoke softly, his eyes scanning Dee’s burned body as both brothers tried to heal her.

Virgil was the one to speak next, “She should, but we cannot travel and we need healing supplies… I understand you do not like magic, we shall leave as soon as Dee is healed…”

“No!” Remus snapped, “You cannot leave! Your King will want you dead… Dee killed his daughter!”

“However we know your fathers views of magic,” Logan snapped, his clear crystal now blackened as he set it aside.

The King stepped forward, scanning the guarded looks both Logan and Virgil shot him, “And which views do you believe I have?”

“The stories are as old as time. This Kingdom despises magic, you don’t have any court magi, nor schools of magic. Plus your children hardly know a thing about controlling their magical abilities,” Logan began before the King cut him off.

“You have been told lies my child,” He sighed, “We have no mages on account of the fact our mages were either murdered or kidnapped. Once our Kingdom had many schools of magic, they were burned along with their texts. It is one of my biggest regrets that my sons cannot safely learn their crafts.”

Virgil stepped away from the King, his mind spinning as the other nobles from the Kingdom appeared visibly uncomfortable. Logan looked down to Dee as he sighed, unable to continue healing without his herbs and crystals. Remus was holding Dee’s head in his lap, gently moving her hair from her face to see the damage. Patton knelt beside Logan holding the crystal as tears threatened to fall. 

Virgil’s eyes met the Kings, “What do you want to do with us since you say you don’t hate magic…”

“Magic has its purposes, like everything. Some magic is evil,” The King began, Logan snapping.

“That’s not what my brother asked,” Logan snapped, standing, “Despite what you think Dee did not have to help here and now or that night all those years ago. She could have gotten me out and left, taken us away. But no, she swapped places with me… now look at her! Screw your political answers, we need to know now. What are you going to do to us? We can’t go home, we’ll be killed on sight, we can leave now but if my sister dies that’s on your head.”

The room had turned a deep blue as tears fell from Logan’s cheeks, standing protectively over his sister and between the King and Virgil. All eyes were fixated on Logan and the King that no one saw Virgil place a hand on Logan’s shoulder before the light faded from the room. The King took a breath and nodded, his eyes falling to the girl unconscious on the floor. 

“You may stay in my Kingdom, and in my home. I shall call on aid for your sister,” The King stated, addressing the crowd, “The Stellae family are under this Kingdom’s protection for their service to the crown. Anyone that dares harm any of the noble Stellae family will face my wrath. Now, we should get Dee somewhere more appropriate to begin healing.”

Remus moved first, lifting Dee with ease as he carried her from the room, followed close behind by Virgil and Roman. Logan stood, his whole body remaining tense, his eyes glowing softly with his deep blue magic. The King held his hands up as Logan slowly relaxed, looking up to the King and Queen.

“Thank you for your protection. Hopefully my sister will live for it to be of use to her,” he snapped, turning on his heel and following the others out of the room. Logan knew his words were cruel, however watching Dee fall in front of him when he couldn’t help broke him.

___________________________

As the days moved on Virgil found himself spending more and more time with Roman. The younger boy began teaching Roman more about magic, beginning with magical languages and runes since they were his favourite topic. Roman had shown Virgil his notes from Virgil’s jacket, translating the remaining runes with Virgil’s help.

“How is she doing now?” Roman asked as Virgil passed him a new notebook.

Virgil’s face fell slightly, “No change. Logan said something about her strength returning but I don’t know if that’s wishful thinking on his part. How are you doing in Logan’s lessons?”

Roman let out a dramatic sigh and passed Virgil his latest graded paper, a B- displayed in the top corner. “I have never obtained less than an A+ on any paper and yet, I can barely obtain a B in your brother’s classes. Why do we have to study all of these ancient houses when they don’t exist anymore?”

A laugh fell from Virgil’s lips, throwing Roman off as his eyes met the other boy, Virgil rarely smiled since they had met, his laughs a rare creature Roman once mused over bottling the sound. Virgil was skimming the paper, shaking his head and laughing to himself, distracting Roman’s thoughts more. When Virgil first spoke Roman was in his own world, too distracted imagining purple eyes sparkling as laughter filled the air.

“Roman,” Virgil questioned, watching as the Prince snapped out of his daydream. “Logan is a perfectionist, and learning of the families helps to learn where your magic comes from. Yes most of the families are gone, however their blood lingers. Your mother’s blood comes from the ancient Malladictus family while your father’s blood traces to the Avernus family. Two families with strong magic in their own right, my family is one of the few remaining ancient families with their ancient names. Legends say that the families were gifted magic and their names relate to the source of their magic…”

“You sound like Logan,” Roman pouted, his eyes falling to his runic notes, “We study every day but Logan says he won’t teach us any combative magics. Patton and Remus have been asking to start learning the languages too but Logan said you’d have to teach that. Why won’t you teach other topics?”

Virgil’s smile fell, “Because we mastered different areas of magic. I mastered runic languages but have not mastered divination like Logan. We are still learning the other magics we haven’t mastered.”

“We might need to learn combative magics Virgil, especially if your old King decides to retaliate for his daughter’s death.” Roman retorted, unfortunately making perfect sense.

“Dee is the master in combative magics, Logan was a strategist but he struggles with most types of combat. I focus on enhancing other abilities, the only one of us who could teach you combative magics is still unconscious,” Virgil’s shoulders slumped, “I guess it’s why she swapped places with Logan that night.”

The boys fell into an uncomfortable silence, Virgil nervously picking at his shirt sleeves. Roman sighed, his eyes scanning his old notes as he began writing in his new note book, the pair returning their focus to Roman’s lesson. Virgil spoke softly as he lead Roman through a new type of rune, teaching him how double-runes were created and how they could be broken. The pair continued the lesson for another hour before there was a soft knock on the door and Patton opened it.

“Logan’s lesson is about to begin Ro,” Patton beamed, holding his heavy book he used for note-taking.

Roman smiled, packing up as Virgil copied, following the brothers to the library and Logan who sat alone, reading. His eyes didn’t lift from the page he was reading as Patton and Roman sat at the table they used for lessons. Virgil simply nodded to his brother and left the room, headed to check on his herbs and potions. True to his word, the King had obtained healers and herbalists to aid in Dee’s recovery, her wounds were not as severe as previously however she hardly stirred. Virgil had begun making potions he knew could strengthen magic, prepared to feed them to Dee to hopefully boost her powers enough to wake her. The potions would be ready by the morning when Logan and Virgil planned an attempt. Virgil focused on his potion as Logan’s lesson began.

“Where is Remus tonight?” Logan asked softly, his eyes meeting Patton’s as the younger male flustered before responding.

“Last I saw him he was headed to Dee’s room,” Patton mumbled, “Said something about spending time with her alone for a bit.”

Logan simply nodded and sighed, he knew Remus and Dee had a connection and as much as he disapproved of the idea he was glad someone truly cared for his sister. A flash of dark blue filled the room as the lights darkened and Logan began his newest lesson, Divination for Beginners.

The lesson began with the dangers of divination, Logan was preparing to begin reviewing the symbols in divination when Remus ran at the table. Sighing, the mage stopped and faced his late student, who admittedly looked flustered. As Logan motioned to Remus’ empty seat Remus spoke.

“You need to come to Dee’s room,” Remus was panting as his brothers stared at him in confusion.

Remus had been spending as long as possible with Dee, helping the healers as much as he could. It wasn’t uncommon for Remus to miss a lesson or two from staying with Dee, Logan often visited and found Remus asleep in a chair or the small cot beside Dee’s bed. As much as Logan was wary of Remus he had to admit the boy appeared to care for his sister.

“Remus, thank you for showing face today,” Logan stated calmly, “Now, please take your seat, we can visit Dee after the lesson.”

Remus shook his head, the green in his eyes glowing softly as he passed an image to Logan, “Dee’s dream walking. Something is happening… I don’t know, the room’s glowing gold!”

Logan’s eyes widened, he looked to Roman and Patton, “Apologies… might we reschedule for tomorrow.”

Both boys nodded as Logan swiftly followed Remus back to Dee’s room. Dee was unmoving in the bed however a soft golden glow filled the room as the shadows - untouched by the glow - grew. Logan flicked his wrist, his eyes glowing the royal blue Remus had grown accustomed to as Logan stood beside Dee. Blood trickled from Dee’s nose as Logan began scanning the room, searching for the source of the shadows. When Logan’s eyes fell to the ring Dee had been wearing he cursed himself, gently sliding the ring from her hand.

“Remus, pop quiz time. What happens when you imbue an object with magic?” Logan stated, holding a pulsing ring in his hand.

“It becomes a vessel?”

“Good. Now, what happens if you use the spell held inside the object and don’t replace it?” Logan continued, placing the ring on the table.

“The object can host other magic,” Remus stated as Logan smiled and nodded, lifting a small diamond. “But you said it couldn’t host much magic.”

“I did. What exceptions were there,” Logan quizzed, focusing on the diamond as it began glowing.

Remus stared at Logan, confusion filling his eyes as the room filled with the deep blue of Logan’s magic. “If the items creator filled the object?”

“Exactly,” Logan barked out an ancient word as the ring shattered and the room filled with gold light and black shadows.

Remus yelled as a blue shimmer surrounded him, protecting him. The shadows clawed at the walls, attempted to attack Remus and Logan. The golden glow faded as shadows overpowered it, clawing at Dee’s unconscious form. Dee’s eyes flew wide, her hands glowing brightly as the Shadows hissed, dissipating as quickly as they had formed, Dee’s body returning to its unmoving state, the glow gone once more.

“What the heck was that!?” Remus yelled, checking over Dee as Logan smoothed his shirt, muttering some curses.

“Unfortunately for us, Dee was strong enough to weaken the shadows, but not destroy them entirely. I believe a piece of the shadows used Dee’s magic to hide in the ring, allowing it to survive. It would also explain why Dee hasn’t awoken. Your father needs to know the shadow creature is still alive.” Logan sighed, picking up some herbs from the table and chewing on them.

“Well fuck.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the long wait between posts, work was crazy over the winter. Hopefully I should be back to posting on a more regular basis!


	4. Of History and Memory

It had been three days since the incident in Dee’s room and she had shown no change. Logan had insisted on the Princes returning to their studies, even though he too was very much distracted. Remus had argued the fact with Logan for hours, eventually conceding when Logan pointed out how he couldn’t help Dee if he couldn’t control his abilities. Virgil, free of Logan’s lessons, spent his time in the library. The King had discovered a few tomes in a language long assumed dead, luckily for them it was a language Virgil had studied enabling him to translate the tomes. That was where Roman found him after Logan’s lesson; curled in the corner of a chair asleep, a large tome opened on the desk before him and a translation half-written in a leather bound writing journal. Virgil hadn’t slept much since the incident, much like Logan and Remus, his skin had paled much to Roman’s surprise and the dark circles under his eyes were prominent. 

Roman silently packed up Virgil’s books, slipping them into his bag before pausing and gently scooping Virgil into his arms. Virgil shifted into Roman’s chest, curling closer to the Prince in his sleep. Roman carried the smaller boy to his room as it was closer, laying Virgil on his bed and carefully slipping his shoes and charms off so he could sleep soundly. Virgil visibly relaxed surrounded by the smell of Roman, as the blankets were placed over him he sighed softly. Roman turned to the desk in his room, pulling out the books and reading Virgil’s translation, taking additional notes on a parchment. The pair remained like this until Roman grew too tired and climbed into bed beside Virgil, remaining above the blankets to give Virgil his space. 

As morning dawned, Virgil woke, lying on Roman’s chest with the Prince holding him. His breath caught in his throat as he tensed, earning a grumble from the sleeping Prince. Roman pulled Virgil closer to him, pinning the younger mage to his side as Virgil yelped in shock. 

“...mm’o back to sleep,” Roman mumbled, kissing Virgil’s hair earning a soft yelp, a smirk donning Roman’s face, his eyes opening and looking down to Virgil.

“We should get up,” Virgil retorted, a soft tremble in his voice.

Roman’s eyes shot to the window and the light attempting to pierce their comfortable slumber, “Fine… Virgil… I- I’m sorry, I carried you here without your permission but I couldn’t leave you in the library and my room was clos-”

Virgil smiled to Roman, cutting him off, “It’s okay Roman… but what are people going to think. You’re the prince and I’m a stray mage your father…”

“You are a Noble mage from an ancient family who is helping to teach my brothers and I how to control our abilities,” Roman stated, “And besides that, you’re hot.”

Virgil’s face flushed bright red as he sat up, looking back to Roman, “Aww, you think I’m hot.”

Before Roman could reply, Virgil had stood and gave him a soft wave. Roman groaned at the loss of Virgil cuddled into him as he sat up. Virgil quickly slipped his shoes on and grabbed his books, darting to Roman’s side of the bed and kissing the Prince’s cheek. Roman gasped, watching the younger mage flying out of the room, a smile on his lips. Virgil reached his room in record time, panting as he closed the door behind him, lightly touching his lips while a smile formed. Both boys got ready for the day, meeting in the dining room, sharing secret glances as food was served.

Remus, Logan and Patton were locked in yet another discussion, “How do we know they aren’t preparing to mount an attack?” Remus whispered, “Their Princess is dead.”

“We don’t, but it’s hard to mount an immediate attack when their war strategist is here and the commander of the royal guard is upstairs in a long sleep.” Logan retorted, sighing, “They are likely planning something however a number of their people will not stand against us.”

Patton looked up from his breakfast, “Surely you’ve seen the signs for a coming war... “

Sighing Logan nodded, “I should never have told you the meaning of those signs…”

“Why? You seem to forget I’m the same age as Virgil,” Patton snapped.

“I don’t think he meant anything by that statement Pat,” Remus remarked, “At least not meaning your age.”

“Why do you act like the troubles rest on your shoulders alone Logan? You aren’t even of age yet and you act like you’re so old. What kind of Kingdom puts kids in charge of war planning!?” Patton yelled, drawing everyone’s eyes.

Virgil cleared his throat, eyes around the room darting to him. “Because their previous commander and war strategist lost in combat to Dee and Logan.”

“You mean to tell us that Logan beat a war strategist in combat!” Remus laughed looking at Logan and shaking his head, “You’re strong but really?”

Logan chuckled, “It’s easy when you can see every move they plan to make. Wasn’t really a fair combat since they had no magic.”

“How old were you and Dee when you took your positions?” The King asked, originally amused by the conversation, now intrigued. 

“Dee took her place at thirteen, the commander made unkind comments and claimed Dee would never be worth anything, she challenged him to the ancient trial of combat. I took my position a year later,” Logan sighed, continuing to eat his food.

The King simply nodded while a strained silence filled the room, Virgil staring at the ceiling. “Why did you kill our mother that night?” He asked softly, the tension growing as all eyes turned to the King.

“Something told me to… a voice said she was poisoning the Queen,” The King muttered, “I am still unsure what.”

“Why does everyone think you despise magic?” Virgil continued.

The King sighed deeply, “It has been a lie told by those who stole our mages. Once we were a thriving Kingdom filled with individuals of all kinds. The year Patton was born was the year everything changed. We were invaded, the invaders solely attacked our magical schools, thousands of mages were slain or kidnapped. Children of magical blood plucked from their cradles… so much was lost.” He took a breath before looking to Logan and Virgil, “Might I ask you a question now?”

Logan gave a curt nod, “Of course, your majesty.”

“Are you truly the Stellae children?” The King asked, watching as confusion covered both Logan and Virgil’s faces.

“Why would we lie about our name?” Logan asked, “We have rarely been permitted to use it however it is still our blood.”

“Because the Stellae family were from my Kingdom. A prominent noble family, the parents and grandparents were murdered in the raids but there was nothing left of the children… other than burned cradles, not even bones. All the evidence pointed to them being dead but I must admit… you are the correct ages,” The King sighed as both brothers froze.

“How can we know?” Virgil asked softly, his hands trembling as tears formed in his eyes, “There must be a way to know!”

The room grew cold as Virgil trembled, Logan’s hand instinctively reaching for his brother’s. Pain crossed Logan’s mind as he gently squeezed Virgil’s hand. Virgil’s eyes met his brothers as he took deep breaths; the room slowly returning to normal. All eyes remained locked on the brothers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dee had pulled the shadow creature into the astral plane, holding both of their essences in the plane. Trapped by a curse Dee placed on the pair, unable to be broken other than with the kiss of someone who truly loves them. The shadow screeched, clawing at Dee’s astral form in anger. Soon, it grew bored and stopped, forming the figure of Dee’s mother, glaring at her. 

“What makes you think you can keep me here!” the shadow hissed, “You couldn’t even kill me on your plane!”

Dee’s form leaned on the table of herbs, “Because we’re trapped by something other than my magic. You were supposed to be dead so you never knew, but once I met a djin and they taught me another kind of magic. A curse of entrapment to be precise, one that belongs in an ancient tale. Unable to be broken by anything other than true love’s kiss. You were also dead so won’t know your true love was hanged for your failures.”

The Shadow hissed, growing in size as Dee crossed her arms. “You fucking bitch! I’ll destroy you for this!”

“Best not, after all, then you’d have to break a dead person’s spell and we both know they are a lot more irritating,” Dee hissed, her eyes glowing in anger. 

“You could have been great. I was going to make you great, the most powerful mage to live,” the Shadow snapped, staring at Dee, “All you had to do was listen to me!”

“I did and you lied to me. You never believed I could hear lies, and you obviously didn’t know Logan and I taught ourselves how to communicate mentally,” Dee chuckled, “You couldn’t beat us for talking if you never heard it.”

“You warned them…” the Shadow threw magic at Dee, hitting her shoulder as she grit her teeth. “I did all of this for you!”

“No you didn’t,” Dee whispered, “You did it for you. Since you aren’t dead, maybe you can explain something to me… why has every time someone called you my mother been a lie?”

The Shadow froze, “You can hear lies… Only the King and I knew…”

“Lies are lies even when the people don’t know they’re lying,” Dee snarled, standing, “Who the fuck are you? Who am I?”

“You are the Stellae daughter,” the Shadow sighed, truth, “I am not your mother. I was chosen to raise you and your brothers after the raids. The prophecy could not allow you to be raised alongside them.”

Dee stopped in her tracks, “What?”

“You aren’t my children!” the Shadow yelled, “You were born in this cesspit, to the Stellae family, our King heard that this Queen was expecting her third child the year Virgil was born. We couldn’t allow the prophecy to be completed. I told them it was a mistake taking you to the Kingdom to ‘save’ the Queen but the King ordered it.”

“What prophecy?” Dee whispered, staring at her body, cursing herself for choosing to use a curse to hold the Shadow in the astral plane.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for a shorter chapter, I wanted to get more of the backstory out before we continue further down the rabbit hole of this AU. But we have some Prinxiety fluff.
> 
> Please let me know what you think of the fic! <3


	5. Sworn to Secrecy

The King took a moment before speaking, shooting a look to the servants who swiftly cleared the room, leaving the Stellae brothers and the Princes surrounding the King as he began.

“For many moons a legend has been told of two trios of siblings; one of stars, the other crown. These six individuals have been bonded as long as time has existed and lived many lives together; legend has it their birth symbolises the dawn of a new age. The previous times the six have met there has been war. Legends tell of the immense magic held by the six, that they created the different fonts of magic.” The King began, looking to each of the boys before him. “I believe you were kidnapped to attempt to avert destiny, however those bound to one another will always find each other.”

“You mean, like we’re reincarnated spirits?” Roman asked, his brow furrowed, “That we are destined by fate to be with one another… like we don’t have a choice?”

The King sighed, “You always have a choice, sometimes it has been said that you were all simply friends, other times you have fallen in love. Different life times… different choices. The few constants that remain in every telling of the tale is your abilities and war. You mark the beginning and end of things, you six are incredibly important, we won’t know why until the time is right.”

“And this is why legends suck,” Remus snapped, “Dee is upstairs hurt, we can’t even learn magic well because we have nothing to aid us. Our kingdom is headed to war and we sit around for days waiting!”

Logan sighed, “I agree with Remus, we cannot be the six, and if we are, the fates are not in our favour. Virgil hasn’t finished his studies and I cannot teach every aspect of magic in the time we have.”

A phantom figure appeared in the corner of the room surrounded in gold light, “I have an idea about that part…”

“Dee?” Virgil jumped to his feet, “You have enough magic to astral project but not wake up!”

The phantom Dee held a hand up, “Not the time for this V… besides the point, give me lists of things you want from your old rooms. Logan I’ll need you to find a large open space preferably indoors and alone.”

All eyes shot to the phantom Dee as shadows clung to her form. Her eyes sparked for a second and the shadows dissipated, leaving her standing there, appearing more solid than she had done before. Logan began writing his list as Virgil glared before following suit. 

“Okay now I’m confused,” Patton admitted, “Logan said you aren’t as strong at this type of magic. What are you even doing… How can you do thi… I don’t understand what’s going on.”

Dee’s eyes dropped to the floor before she looked to Patton sadly, “I’m not great at this magic, I learned enough to pass the classes. I don’t know if what I want to do is possible but I don’t have anything to lose.”

“Why are you sad?” Virgil whispered, “You never project emo… you can’t block it all out.”

Logan’s eyes darted to his twins, “Why aren’t you awake if you can do this?”

“I did almost wake up, the shadow and I were fighting,” Dee muttered, “It wasn’t going well so I did something stupid. I cursed both of us. A djin’s curse… we’re both trapped in the astral plane.”

“What breaks it,” Roman asked, “You taught us that there’s always a way to break a curse, Logan.”

“She hated fairytales… I thought it would be poetic, and I knew her love was dead,” Dee muttered, were she physically present she would have cried. “I’m sorry, I fucked up.”

Virgil’s eyes welled up as he felt the sadness Dee could not hold back, “What breaks the curse?”

“True love’s kiss,” Dee whispered, “Her true love is dead. I just didn’t think of how I’d wake up…”

Logan’s shoulders slumped, shaking his head. He yelled out and punched the table, tears in his eyes as he turned to look at Dee, “You had to do this? You have to be so self-sacrificing, don’t you? You just had to prove yourself worthy one last time… What now? What will I do without you!”

“I didn’t think!” Dee turned away, “But I can lock the Shadow away, and I might be able to bring you your books. My body won’t fade, I just will exist in the wrong plane. I’m sorry Lo, I wasn’t thinking.”

Tears trickled down Logan’s cheeks as he approached Dee’s form, cupping her cheek as if he could touch her, “We’ll find a way. Dee I promise we’ll find a way. Please be safe, we can’t lose you.”

Virgil hadn’t moved, tears soaking his cheeks as he watched Dee fade, feeling a hand take his. Roman met Virgil’s eyes, tears threatening to fall as he squeezed Virgil’s hand. Logan’s hand fell to his side, tears streaming down the usually stoic man’s cheeks. Remus hadn’t moved from his chair, his eyes on the floor. Patton slumped in his seat, the King placing a hand on his shoulder while the room fell into a tense silence. Logan was the first to move, tearing through the castle to the room Dee’s body lay still.

“I swear I’m bringing you back to me. I can’t lose you sister!” Logan yelled at Dee’s unconscious form, “We need you… I can’t protect anyone, you are the one who is good at that… please Dee, I need you back. But fuck, I’m going to do what you ask.”

Logan scoured the castle to find an empty room large enough for whatever Dee could have been planning and found an old library missing its books. He took a seat in the centre of the room and began meditating. Without knowing another person had joined him and sat with him. The other person remained silent as they waited for whatever Dee had planned. Two pairs of eyes opened at a loud crashing around them as the astral form of Dee stood in front of them, barely visible.

“Dee?” Logan jumped to his feet, “Why are you so….”

The shadows clung to Dee once more as she slammed her hands together and once again appeared stronger laughing. Logan was staring as the other voice spoke up from behind him.

“How did you do this?” Patton’s voice spoke up, his eyes transfixed on the now-full library.

Dee squealed happily, her eyes lighting up as she stared at her handiwork, “I can’t believe that worked.”

Logan’s eyes widened as they fell to the stack of books on a desk, he rushed to them, his hands brushing over an item beside the books. Spinning on his toes he laughed, “I don’t know how you did this, where did you get the power?”

“I have a parasite attempting to drain me every two seconds. I decided to let it latch on because now I’m burning through its magic. Plus teleportation and moving objects is simpler when you’re in the astral plane,” Dee smiled, “I have a couple of things I still have to grab but then I’ll be back… Oh and Lo, get V and check your rooms.”

Dee faded once more as Logan turned to Patton, beaming. “We have all the books we could possibly need for you to learn properly! This is the contents of the royal library…”

“Have you ever watched Dee when she thinks no one is looking,” Patton whispered, staring at the spot Dee had been standing.

“What do you mean?” 

Patton’s head tilted towards Logan, “She’s reading you, trying to see if you can see the thing she’s hiding.”

Logan’s face turned serious as he faced Patton, “and what is my sister hiding?”

“I used to think her emotions but Virgil can feel them,” Patton sighed and looked around the library, “She’s trying to make up for something, but I don’t know what.”

Logan’s gaze fell to the books surrounding the pair, “what is she sorry for?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dee appeared once more in the castle of her old King, she wandered through the halls, invisible to the guards thanks to her being in the astral plane. The King was in his council room, Dee didn’t know how she knew this she just did. She had cleared out her brothers old rooms; her room was barren; the library was cleared out; Dee did not have to come back here. And yet, here she was. She walked to the council room, passing through the corridors she had grown up in, opening the doors with a flick of her wrist as her astral form became visible, standing between the doors smirking.

“You!” A voice yelled out, drawing a sword as the owner of the voice blocked the King from view.

“Deceit,” the King noted and waved the other individual aside, “I never expected you to be here again. Leave us.” the King called out, clearing the room in two heartbeats.

“Thought you’d be preparing for war,” Dee mused, leaning against the war table. “You know, after their deaths.”

The King shook his head, “Not when the culprit comes to my Kingdom of their own volition.”

A laugh fell from Dee’s lips, “Incorrect on two counts there. I’m in the astral plane, so not really here. And, I didn’t lay a hand on your daughter. The thing that was once my “mother” killed her.”

“And why would I believe you?” the King snapped, standing as Dee relaxed.

“Because you know I can’t lie. Or be lied to,” Dee shot the King a look, “Isn’t that why you had me do what I did?”

The King froze, his hand hovering over the hilt of his sword. He moved in one swift motion, drawing his sword and holding it steady at Dee’s throat. “We do not speak of that.”

“Why not? You ordered every single thing I did. And I did it all,” Dee hissed, “Our souls will never be clean, all the blood, it seeps into any crack… and those floors were cracked.”

The blade touched Dee’s chin, “You didn’t have to do what you did, you longed for power. It wasn’t like I forced you to do any of it. You enjoyed it, didn’t you?” The King stiffened, his eyes darkening as his grip tightened, “What don’t you understand? You are not the hero in this story Deceit. I wonder what your brothers would say about what you did.”

“And you are?” Dee laughed, stepping forward as the blade passed through her astral form.

The King sheathed his sword, giving a deep sigh, “And we are at an impasse. Why did you come back? You cleared yours and your sibling’s rooms, you cleared our library. Why are you here?”

“I wanted to see if you had noticed all the things I did,” Dee smiled, “You got almost all of them, thought your wife would like to feel the poison her daughter slipped me. It’s been a while since I slipped it into her evening drinks, shame you didn’t notice.”

The King’s body tensed, rage and confusion crossed his face as a servant rushed through the doors, looking terrified. The servant bowed and blurted out, “My King… the Queen, she’s dead.”

Dee waved to the King as he screamed, “Now you can call me a traitor honestly. She should have known I would know she grew the poison, and you shouldn’t have been so stupid, my King. Now, I hope my message is clear, come after those I love again and your Kingdom will burn at my hand.”

“You bitch!” the King yelled, lashing out as Dee’s form faded once more.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Logan and Patton had taken a seat at a table and were discussing the possibilities for Dee’s guilty conscience. The pair had begun writing a list and crossing off different ideas after a generally heated debate. Roman and Virgil had eventually joined the pair, Virgil clutching the book he had been attempting to translate with a wide smile on his face. Unfortunately the joy quickly faded when Patton filled the pair in on their current task. The day grew late when Remus finally joined them, he had mostly retreated into his quarters alone, while his brothers were used to Remus being isolated however this was extreme even for him. 

“Dee is keeping secrets,” Virgil muttered looking up to Remus, “We’re trying to work out what.”

Remus took a seat, looking over the list in silence, “What makes you think she’s keeping secrets?”

“When she thinks no one is looking, she looks like she is hoping for forgiveness,” Patton whispered, “You used to do the same thing Rem.”

Remus’ eyes dropped back to the list, his lips pursed before he left the room, returning with a locked box. A word was whispered and the box opened, neatly written letters filled the box, Remus searched through the box and pulled out a letter that was noticeably different than the others. He read over the letter once before passing it to Logan and Virgil to read. 

“We used to write at least once a week, she sent this and then didn’t answer for three weeks. Whatever the King had her do hurt her, the ink was like this when I got the letter,” Remus stated, looking at the dirty letter covered in tear marks. 

Logan’s face fell as he read the letter, Virgil’s whole body slumped. Remus sat, his hands gently brushing over the letters remaining in the box. Roman and Patton shared confused and worried looks. Logan began reading aloud for the others in the room.

“I swear Rem, I didn’t want to do what he said but he’ll hurt my brothers. There was so much blood, their screams will never leave my mind,” Logan’s voice caught in his throat as he continued, “The youngest was Virgil’s age, they hadn’t done anything but the guards… they didn’t believe either of us. I told them the truth but they didn’t believe me, their blood got everywhere.”

Roman’s body tensed, his eyes darting to Remus who was reading another letter from the box. Patton took Logan’s hand, gently prying the letter from his hands and finishing reading the letter. Virgil’s eyes were trained on something behind the group, standing still. 

“They said that if I lied again they’d hurt Virgil and make me watch. I didn’t lie Rem, I swear, I can’t lie, it hurts too much,” Patton paused, looking up to Logan who simply nodded to continue, “They don’t care if it’s the truth, they just want to hurt people. I need to be able to lie if I can save any of these people, and my brothers.”

Virgil reached out to Patton, gently lowering his hands to the table, “You never told us Dee.”

“How could I? I was eleven, and if I said anything you’d be hurt,” Dee had her arms wrapped around her astral form, “That was the first time. The King got proud of me, I became his best tool,” Dee whispered, “I wish you never learned this.”

Logan stood, tears threatening to fall, “Why? You’re my sister, I love you, no matter what that bastard made you do. You aren’t a bad person.”

Dee moved away from the group, “Yes, yes I am. I began enjoying it Logan, and then it wasn’t the guards inflicting the punishment. I was the head of the royal guard, that meant I dealt with traitors and whatever the King wanted.” Dee’s shoulders slumped, “It’s why I don’t care about being trapped here. I deserve punishment, and who could love someone like me? That’s worse than a death sentence, I don’t deserve to be freed.”

Virgil stood, slamming his fists on the table, “Bullshit! You didn’t enjoy it, you’d barely speak after the King sent you on missions.”

“If you truly enjoyed it you wouldn’t be constantly looking for forgiveness,” Patton stated, looking up to Dee as he stepped towards her, he moved slowly as Dee watched him. “At the dinner I saw you swap the drinks, if you truly didn’t care you wouldn’t care who took the Princesses drink. But you’d drink it.”

Dee’s eyes fell to the floor, “I’ve killed so many, their blood will never wash off… their screams never leave my mind. Why do I still live when they die? I don’t deserve life.”

“Yes, you do,” Patton stated, his hands reaching out and gently taking Dee’s hands, his hands glowing a light blue. “You saved all those people at the party, how many times have you put yourself in the line of fire for people you don’t even know?”

“Too many times,” Logan stated, stepping forwards, smiling to his sister. “You would redirect the King’s anger to yourself so often Dee.”

Dee chuckled, looking to Logan and then Virgil, her eyes raised towards where she had seen Remus standing once. Remus wasn’t there anymore, the box of letters lay open on the table. Roman had stood beside Virgil and was watching the scene before him carefully, a hand gently resting on Virgil’s arm. Tears slid down Dee’s cheeks as she began fading out, her eyes widening as she tried to stay in the library. Darkness surrounded Dee as she screamed and struggled to form her astral body. Light pierced the darkness, something soft touching her forehead as something wet hit her cheeks. Raising a hand Dee’s eyes flew open. A pair of green eyes were staring at her, tears soaking the owner of the eyes’ face. Her hand reached out and gently touched the person’s cheek, her jaw dropping as green-eyes smiled. 

“Dee,” Remus whispered, his arms wrapping around her torso as Dee clung to him, a sob wracking her body. 

“H...How did you wake me up?” Dee whispered, sobs shaking her whole body as she held Remus tight.

Remus kissed Dee’s forehead, “I did that,” he smiled and looked down to Dee, “You said you didn’t think you’d be able to be woken up, I thought it was because you didn’t love me…”

“I don’t deserve your love Rem,” she whispered, kissing Remus’ cheek. “We should go to the library but I have to do something first.”

Remus nodded, “What do you need?”

Dee moved slowly, picking up a red orb, a smirk played on her lips as she held the orb out and began speaking in an ancient language. Remus watched as the shadow screeched and clawed at the walls, it appeared a lot smaller than he remembered as the room glowed golden. The orb glowed as the shadow was sucked into it, the glow faded as Dee slumped against Remus. Remus stayed quiet but he saw Dee wipe the blood from her nose; the slight tremble in her hand as she placed the orb aside; and the hidden wince Dee made when moving her burned hands. Without a word, Remus stood and silently supported Dee as the pair made their way to the library. 

“Remus, Dee fad… Dee?” Roman’s eyes widened, “Logan, Virgil, Dee’s awake!”

Confused voices sounded behind Roman as Dee’s brothers rushed over, Virgil practically tackled Dee to the floor as he hugged her tight. Logan reached Dee a second after Virgil and wrapped the pair in his arms. Remus continued to hold onto Dee, supporting her weight as she wrapped her arms around her brothers. Virgil then punched Dee’s arm, earning a soft yelp from the girl, eyes zoned in on Dee, scanning her. She was pale, which Logan would state was understandable, but she looked tired, her eyes were slow as she tried to focus on the people around her. Dee was leaned almost entirely on Remus, attempting to stand by herself left her leaning heavily on Remus. Virgil took some of Dee’s weight silently, smiling softly as the boys carried her to a table and sat her down. 

Virgil knelt beside Dee, looking her in the eye, “Did you do anything other than bringing the things from the castle here? How did you even have enough energy to bring the stuff here anyway?”

“I did two other things at the castle,” Dee mumbled, unable to withhold information thanks to her exhaustion. “And I didn’t, I was draining the shadow so I could trap it if I woke up…”

Virgil nodded, “Tell me what you did Dee.”

“I taunted the King… and…” Dee’s voice dropped, “I poisoned the Queen.”

Logan’s sigh was audible as Virgil took a deep breath, “Okay, now, what about the shadow?”

“She trapped it, that is what exhausted her,” Remus whispered, his arm still wrapped around Dee’s body as she acknowledged his statement with a nod. 

“So you emptied our rooms, cleared the royal library, poisoned the Queen and taunted the King,” Logan sighed, “Why did you poison the Queen?”

“She was the one who made all the poisons for the Kingdom, I burned her herbs and used the same poison she had used on me,” Dee mumbled, “And taunting the King was so he’d target me. Can we stop asking me questions since I have no choice in answering just now.”

Logan and Virgil both nodded, taking their seats at the table as Patton and Roman joined them. Remus looked down to Dee as her head fell against his chest, her eyes barely open. Patton smiled at his older brother, while Remus looked over Dee, smoothing her hair in silence. 

“We need to tell your father,” Logan stated, “That King is a foul tempered man with the ability to lash out at this Kingdom.”

“He’s a little bitch, and half the guard are scared to touch you or V,” Dee mumbled, barely awake as she forced her eyes open.

“And he will want us dead,” Remus stated, earning a grumble from Dee as his voice reverberated in his chest. 

Roman laughed, earning confused looks from everyone at the table. “We have their chief strategist and the head of the royal guard! You two know the main strategies the militia use!”  
“Yes, and a traitor to the crown who the King wants dead,” Dee mumbled.

“We’re focusing on the positives now Dee, you’re awake and you’ll have your strength back soon,” Patton stated softly, “And now we have the books so we can learn more magic.”

The six began brainstorming ideas to protect the Kingdom, within minutes Dee had fallen asleep curled into Remus. The voices lowered to allow Dee to rest, soon the group dispersed and returned to their respective bedrooms. Remus carried Dee to his room, he attempted to tuck her in but as he moved away she woke, her eyes wide. Dee trembled as she spoke, begging Remus to stay with her. Remus nodded and picked out a clean shirt for Dee, passing it to her. 

“I’m going to get changed behind the screen there, shout me when you’re changed and I promise I’ll stay with you as long as you want,” Remus smiled softly and slipped behind the screen. 

He waited until he was changed and Dee called out to him before returning to the room. Dee smiled meekly as Remus sat beside her on his bed, his hand reaching towards her. Remus kissed Dee’s hair as she curled into his chest and he pulled the covers over them. The pair slipped into a comfortable slumber, Dee curled tight against Remus’ chest as he held her close. The pair were still curled close when the light broke through the curtains, waking the pair from their sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy this fic! I've been enjoying writing it, even though I know it isn't the best, its just for fun.
> 
> Please let me know what you think!


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